10 bolt front. Loose pinion. Just tighten the nut?

[y5mgisi]

The pinion on my front 10 bolt in my suburban is loose. I can grab it and move it up, down, and side to side. It also needs the pinion seal replaced. Can i just removethe nut and yoke, replace tthe seal, and then re install the nut and yoke? Or do I need to replace the crush sleeve also? Thanks!

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

The right way is to replace the crush sleeve, but people sometimes get away with counting threads and re-using the nut etc.

In my experience though, the pinion is usually loose because the pinion bearing are done for. Also a common cause of a leaky seal.

 

[y5mgisi]

Good call. I'llhave to pull it all apart and do a full inspecttion.

 

[4xcrazy]

Front diff, doesn't roll all the time unless in 4wd, I have just removed it, installed a new seal and tightened it back up. It doesn't gets used nearly as much as the rear. Even if done wrong, it'd still take forever to do any real damage to it.

 

[blazinzuk]

I would say slight movement as a temporary fix yes. Very temporary. You do not want one of those bearings to let go. Like Chris said pretty good indication your bearings are shot

 

[big dan]

The right way is to replace the crush sleeve, but people sometimes get away with counting threads and re-using the nut etc.

In my experience though, the pinion is usually loose because the pinion bearing are done for. Also a common cause of a leaky seal.

x2. If its not something I rely on or a front diff like mentioned Ill do the thread count and replace. Got away with it many times. In fact the front diff on my dd has been done that way for 7 years with no damage.

Some one once told me the thing about leaky seals being caused by loose/worn out pinion bearings. Since then Ive checked for pinion wobble every time I came across a leaky seal and I would say 9 of 10 had loose pinion bearings.

 

[Stomis]

FYI you dont need to know how to setup gears to do a diff overhaul with the same gears if they are still good. All you have to set is the pinion preload on the crush collar.